Love

Love in its various forms acts as a major facilitator of interpersonal relationships and, owing to its central psychological importance, is one of the most common themes in the creative arts. It’s called the greatest virtue of humankind - an unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another comprising kindness, compassion and affection. Robert Sternberg’s triangular theory of love (1985) argues that love comprises three main components, intimacy, passion and commitment. Intimacy involves closeness, caring, and emotional support. Passion refers to states of emotional and physiological arousal including sexual arousal and physical attraction as well as other intense emotional experiences. Commitment involves a decision to commit to loving the other and trying to maintain that love over time. Consummate love is theorised to have all three components and is seen to be the complete form of love. This type of love represents the ideal relationship which many strive towards and some achieve. Yet achieving it is only the start and maintaining it is instead the key to possessing consummate love.